Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Ladybugs. Dots. Spots... I am hoping the blog will undergo some changes in 2011. I'm considering a new look and even some added components.

In the meantime, our family is still basking in the afterglow of a beautiful and memorable Christmas season. I am so thankful for the traditions that make this time of year so special. Most of all, I am thankful for the birth of a saviour. A tiny baby born that our hearts may be worthy of forgiveness and grace, an infant gift that has saved me from my sin and washed me clean of the imperfections that could destroy me. Instead, those pieces of myself are what helps me cling to Him, seeking His will, instead of my own. I love celebrating Christmas, every single aspect of it. I love lit candles in the windows, trees filled with baubles that tell the tales of our lives one fragment of time by one fragment of time. Yes, I even love Santa Claus and the eternal hope that is built when humans look past their own needs to meet the needs of others.

Tea. Once a year, at Christmas, we venture into the city to a lovely hotel that I may never actually stay in to enjoy the warmth and beauty of the season. I LOVE taking my mother, who not only drinks tea daily but still values the sentimental goodness of dressing up and stealing a few hours to just be. At tea. Together.

I love that Hannah had her first exposure to tea this year and LOVED every moment, from slipping on her green velvet dress to plopping at least a million marshmellows into her tiny cup of hot chocolate. I love that we go with timeless friends, the kind that you pray you will be with forever. The friends that you go to when prayer is needed and when oxygen is necessary...and they bring their family, and you recognize the lost art of being with people this way, no stress, no worries, just tea and thee and the Christmas tree. It is by far one of the most Mary moments during a Martha season. I am thankful the Lord grants us those opportunities to relish our relationships, not only with Him but with others who touch our lives and bless our hearts.

Just one of the many traditions that have humbled us this season, I hope to post a bit more about the past few weeks. Thank you, as always for visiting us here. Praying your Christmas was blessed beyond measure.

Music

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY...

By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge it's rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures. ~Proverbs 23: 3-4

Our heavenly Father knows to place us where we may learn lessons impossible anywhere else. He has neither misplaced nor displaced us. ~Elisabeth Elliot

People are like stained glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is light from within.~Elisabeth Kubler-Ross